


let me kiss you

by kairiolette



Category: Free!
Genre: Haru/Everyone, M/M, happy birthday Haru, makoharu friendship but endgame rinharu fyi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-29
Updated: 2014-06-29
Packaged: 2018-02-06 17:47:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,300
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1866804
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kairiolette/pseuds/kairiolette
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Haru gets a special present from everyone during the days leading up to his birthday. (Basically everyone lays one on Haru, but Rin especially.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	let me kiss you

_June 27th_

“Thanks for agreeing to come shopping with me, Haru-chan!” Nagisa sings, yet another random— _and unnecessary_ ; Haru clenches his teeth—display of gratitude as Haru leisurely prods their brimming shopping cart down the aisle. _“Agreeing”_ —Haru figures he had been more or less forced by Nagisa, dragged out of his house and all the way to the marketplace nearly an hour ago. He disregards Nagisa’s thanks. His narrowed his eyes, however, are menacing enough to communicate to Nagisa that he better put that box of sugary cereal back on the shelf—and he does, sheepishly so. But nothing ever fazes Nagisa for more than about three seconds.

“Say, Haru-chan,” he starts impishly, skipping ahead of the cart, hands twisting behind his back. He peers over his shoulder with a smirk, “A special day’s coming up soon, huh?”

Haru studies the stacks of protein bars to his right. He had naively hoped no one would remember that “special day.” Nagisa giggles.

“Any present in particular you want from me?” he chirps, falling back to walk in time with Haru as he continues his slow crawl down the aisle.

Without even thinking about it, Haru knows he just wants a day at the pool with his friends—something he’d probably be doing anyway, regardless of the date, so he doesn’t voice his desires.

“A day at the pool doesn’t count, Haru-chan!” Nagisa scolds playfully, wagging a finger in Haru’s face and then in one fluid motion curling his hand around Haru’s bicep. “Think of something you wouldn’t normally get.”

Haru realizes that they have stopped in the center of the aisle. Nagisa’s large eyes blink up at him, expression excited and expectant, and Haru has to lean away from all the potential energy.

“I just want to swim,” he replies, and Nagisa laughs affectionately, and is about to protest when Haru continues: “Maybe you and I can race?”

“Race!?” Nagisa yells, grin so bright that Haru looks away, starts walking again.

“Freestyle,” Haru amends, though that much had to be clear as water to Nagisa. He latches on to Haru’s arm once more.

“I’ll lose for sure, though!” he laughs, and does not seem to be too put off by it. Haru spares him a glance.

“It would be nice to race with you,” he admits, face flushing as he speaks. It’s the least he could ask of his friend. He cannot comprehend why it makes Nagisa so happy, does not understand why it makes his own lips tug upward on his otherwise stoic face. Nagisa grows suspiciously quiet, tugging on Haru’s arm to pull him to a halt.

“I thought of an early birthday present,” he says suddenly, and the moment Haru cocks his head to look at him, Nagisa’s hands cradle his face.

“Nagis—mmph,” Nagisa’s lips capture any noise Haru makes as he hops onto his tip-toes to lay one right on him. Haru, surprised by the chaste kiss, is, however, unsurprised by the characteristic sweetness he tastes on Nagisa’s lips—this sweetness lingers, even after Nagisa eases back down on his heels. His giggle sounds a bit nervous, and Haru’s face is burning as he glances, paranoid, up and down the aisle. His lips tingle. Nagisa licks his own, smiling in satisfaction.

“Happy almost-birthday, Haru-chan!” he whispers, inexplicably discreet after a very public display of affection. Haru can hardly find his voice, even when he tries.

“Nagisa, wh—,” Haru stumbles, and is again interrupted by Nagisa, who leaps ahead, dashing around the corner of the aisle, but not before throwing a smile over his shoulder.

“Catch up, Haru-chan!” he calls, too loud for a public place, and Haru shakes his head, but rolls the cart with more force to find where his friend has bounced off to.

 

_June 28th_

“Thank you, Ha-haruka-senpai,” Rei wheezes, doubled over, trying to recover after their morning jog. Haru presses his hands onto his knees as he pants, chugs his water bottle. “It has been a pleasure jogging with you.”

 _So formal_ , Haru grumbles in his head, but he’s too sweaty to be outwardly irritated.

“You’re welcome, Rei,” he manages, and can only blink impassively when Rei stands upright to smile happily at him.

Rei’s awkward, fumbled, and half-shouted request that Haru accompany him on a jog had surprised Haru, but not unpleasantly; he had found himself more than willing to go. Hanging out one-on-one with Rei isn’t as bothersome as it sounds; their personalities mesh agreeably, and Haru had found the sidelong glances he had cast toward Haru as they ran to be both vexing and vexingly endearing.

In a wordless agreement, they meander haplessly along the path in the opposite direction of which they came, allowing their heartbeats to steady and their sweat-slicked skin to cool. When Rei suddenly clears his throat with a cough, Haru silently gives him his attention.

“Your birthday is in two days, isn’t it, Haruka-senpai?” Rei wonders, innocent, and his lips stretch into another smile as he looks up at the white sky. Haru’s lack of response nonetheless urges Rei to carry on.

“I have been diligently brainstorming the perfect gift for you! taking into account your likes, dislikes, what you already own, the gift’s potential beauty—,” Rei trails off, muttering under his breath like a scientist in a movie as he strokes his sweaty chin, losing himself in a whirlwind of his own thoughts.

“You don’t have to get me anything, Rei,” Haru interjects his noisy process, and Rei startles as if woken. “All I want is a day at the pool with you and everyone else.”

Rei’s open mouth turns upward in a kindhearted chuckle, and Haru turns his gaze to the sky at the sound. His birthday hasn’t even happened yet and it’s been causing him nothing but trouble.

“We would give you that anyway, Haruka-senpai,” Rei tries softly, matching Haru’s slightly faster pace as they follow the path, his backpack jostling. Haru shrugs.

“It’s all I want,” he says simply, and Rei seems to finally accept his answer.

They near closer to Haru’s house as they walk, naturally coming down from their exercise, sweat cooling despite the thick atmosphere. The point where they ought to go their separate ways—Haru turning down the rue to get to his house, Rei heading to the train station—gains closer on them as they continue.

“Rei,” Haru says. “Would you like to have lunch at my house?”

Rei’s eyes shine behind his glasses, and if Haru could he’d tack on a, “it’s nothing special.”

“Ah, I would be honored to join you for lunch,” Rei says honestly, even bowing a bit, and Haru frowns, “but I have agreed to accompany Nagisa-kun on a shopping trip for birthdays presents for you.”

Haru’s frown deepens. “I told you, I don’t want any presents.”

“A birthday without any presents to open? That would not be beautiful at all, Haruka-senpai!” he exclaims, predictably, a manic grin on his face, and Haru just shakes his head.

They finally approach the point where they must part ways, and Rei abruptly spins to face Haru, undoubtedly prepared to bid him farewell in that awkward way of his. Haru humors him, turns as well.

“I would like to wish you a happy early birthday, Haruka-senpai!” he declares, much too loud for Haru’s liking, and before Haru can thank or hush him, Rei ducks in, pressing his lips to Haru’s with a bit too much force. _Ah,_ Haru thinks, startled, _another kiss_ —his second in two days. The kiss tastes salty and is over before Haru’s mind can register it. The moment Rei breaks away from the kiss—his grin still manic and his face not just red from running—he turns and sprints off toward the train station, waving his hand in the air and shouting, “see you soon, Haruka-senpai!”—again, far too loud.

Haru touches his fingertips to his lips, watching Rei’s disappearing figure run away from him, and he genuinely wonders about his friends, sometimes.

 

_June 29th_

A knock on the door at this hour could only be Makoto, and Haru silently berates himself for instantly recognizing the familiar pattern of the knock. The dishes he had eaten on for dinner lay soaped up in his sink and his hands are too full to get the door as he scrubs his pan.

Luckily, Makoto rarely knocks twice.

“Good evening, Haru-chan,” he greets cheerfully, gently nudging the door shut behind him as he enters. “I’m not interrupting, am I?”

“I just finished dinner,” Haru says, adjusting the running water so he can speak and hear without straining. “Were you hungry?”

“Ah, nope! I ate already,” he replies, ever gracious, and Haru peeks over his shoulder to see the familiar sight of Makoto with a tender smile on his face and a hand on his stomach. He steps into the kitchen, toward Haru. “Need any help?”

Haru returns to his soapy, gloved hands, twists the knob of the faucet again to begin rinsing. “You can dry, please.”

Makoto playfully tosses the dishtowel up into the air and catches it, settling beside Haru as Haru continues to rinse. Haru idly remembers that Makoto isn’t the greatest in the kitchen; with a brief swell of amusement he hopes he’ll be able to hold his own with glass plates. Haru allows the water to run slow again; satisfying background noise for the conversation he knows Makoto wants to start.

“Are you visiting your parents for your birthday?” Makoto asks warmly, carefully handling the dripping pan Haru passes to him. Haru picks up a plate, begins to rinse it.

“This coming weekend,” he answers, and he sees from the corner of his eyes Makoto’s shoulders sag in relief.

“Good, that means you can hang out with us tomorrow. For your birthday,” Makoto says, and Haru knows without checking that he’s wearing a cheeky grin. He hands Makoto the plate, and Makoto dutifully scrubs the towel over it. “So, we’ll swim all day, right? Us, Nagisa, Rei, Rin, and maybe even Kou?”

Haru hums in ascent, grateful that Makoto hadn’t made like his other friends and asked about presents. He closes his eyes momentarily, the water chilly even through his gloves, but he feels warm. “How did you know that’s what I wanted to do?”

Makoto laughs, for whatever reason, placing the now-dry plate down on the counter with extra finesse. “Just a hunch, I guess.”

At that, Haru shakes his hands and slides his gloves off so he can remove his apron. Makoto still hovers beside him.

“Then after we swim, we can come back here to sing and open presents,” he adds, and when Haru turns to glare at him, he sports a knowing smile. Haru huffs.

“I don’t need presents,” he grumbles, moving to put away his clean dishes.

“What kind of friends would we be if we didn’t get you birthday presents, Haru-chan?” Makoto teases, but the sincerity in his voice rings clear. _Ones that actually listen to me,_ Haru thinks sourly, but he cannot seem to maintain a bad temper.

“My grandma always used to say, ‘the most valuable gifts cost nothing,’” Haru intones, pulling the overhead cabinet open to return his plate.

“Your grandma never got you birthday presents?” Makoto wonders earnestly, receiving a glare from Haru. He holds up his hands appeasingly.

“I can’t stay long, Haru,” he says, and that much Haru could have guessed considering that he had been shifting from leg to leg instead of sitting this whole time. “I promised the twins I’d watch TV with them before their bedtime.”

When Haru turns back around from the cabinet to ask exactly why he had came over in the first place, Makoto is standing about two steps too close.

“I came to give you part one of your birthday present from me,” he explains, smile too bright, and given the past couple of days, Haru really should expect what happens next. His shoulders feel tiny under the pressure of Makoto’s large hands, and Haru’s chin tilts up on its own accord as Makoto easily presses their lips together. It tastes warm, and Haru is receptive as he draws in a breath through his nose. Makoto’s mouth almost immediately curves upward into a toothy grin against Haru’s lips. He pulls back, chuckling giddily, and Haru scowls as he turns red and touches his lips. “Happy birthday, Haru-chan!”

“Did you all plan this?” he mumbles, hand over his pouting mouth, but Makoto’s smile is sweet.

“A gentleman never kisses and tells,” he presses a long finger to his lips to echo his words, eyes twinkling playfully, and Haru sighs. Makoto’s expression softens, but he still shamelessly grins at Haru’s expense. He starts to back up out of Haru’s space, and Haru starts to breathe again. “I really ought to be heading out now, though. I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Yes,” Haru mindlessly replies, watching as Makoto leaves, saying a quick “good night, Haru-chan!” before exiting Haru’s house. Haru lets his hands drag down his face, over his burning cheeks, and tries not to fret over what tomorrow will bring.

 

_June 30th_

“That was fun,” Rin says through a yawn, stretching with one arm and closing the door behind Makoto with the other. It seems, Haru realizes, that Rin would be staying over that night, considering he had seen all their other friends out as if it were his own house. His friends hadn’t seemed to question it, either—they all have been oddly conspiratorial as of late, what with their bizarre birthday gifts. Rin had offhandedly decided that he would help Haru clean up, but Haru hasn’t let him touch a thing—after a long day wherein he had been the center of attention, a lineup of chores is exactly what he needs to come down.

Actual material presents, despite Haru’s vehement protests, were inevitable, although at the very least they did come after a fulfilling day at the Iwatobi pool. Along with all the kisses Haru had no idea what to do with, he accumulated art supplies from Rei, the hugest mackerel plush toy he’s ever seen from Nagisa, two perfect new jammers from Makoto, and a handmade card and framed picture of the team from Kou. (“This is from my sister,” Rin had said, handing Haru the wrapped gift and card, and then as he leaned in to kiss Haru’s cheek: “and so is this.”

“No presents from you, Rin?” Haru asked, scowling at the kiss but his eyes betrayed amusement and Rin’s sharky grin grew sly.

“You said you didn’t want anything,” he feigned innocence, but Haru could tell that, like all his other friends, he has something up his sleeve.)

Rin comes by Haru, who now stands in front of his sink. He throws a familiar arm over Haru’s shoulder, presses in close. “You had fun, right?”

“Yes,” Haru says, angling his head so their cheeks brush.

“Good,” Rin says with a final squeeze, and then he removes himself, stepping back from Haru. Over his shoulder Haru hears rustling, and he hopes Rin hasn’t started picking up the shredded wrapping paper because Haru was about to do that next.

He turns and is met with Rin’s hand, hovering in front of his face, holding two tickets. Haru pulls Rin’s hand back, his eyes adjust so he can read that these are two passes to the train-ride-away aquarium. He pulls Rin’s hand down so he can see Rin, who pointedly looks elsewhere.

“Happy birthday, Haru,” he mutters.

“The aquarium?” Haru says, eyes glimmering at the idea. Rin shrugs.

“You didn’t think I actually wouldn’t get you anything, right?” he says, allowing Haru to take the tickets in his hands. He looks at them briefly, then moves to put them on his fridge for safekeeping.

“Thank you, Rin,” Haru says, moving back to the sink to get started. “Makoto and I will have a lot of fun.”

Rin makes a noise behind him.

“No one warned me you were funny,” he grumbles, coming to lean back on the counter beside the sink, arms crossing over his chest coolly. Haru schools his expression into the usual. “I can take you sometime this week.”

“Okay,” Haru smiles softly despite himself, hesitating to start the dishes. Rin elbows him.

“Does eighteen feel any different?” he asks, playful, and Haru thinks for a moment, stares at his hands as he runs them under water. He wants to say something about becoming ordinary, but those words don’t line up in his mind quite like they used to.

“Maybe you’ll understand someday,” he says dryly instead, turning the sink off and wiping his hands on the towel.

“Maybe?” Rin growls, and as revenge he grabs one of the spare birthday hats left on the counter and places it on Haru’s head, gently pulling the elastic down under his chin. His knuckles linger against Haru’s skin before he scratches at the back of his own head.

“So, uh,” Rin leans his hip back into the counter after inching closer, “I think I owe you another type of present, according to the others.”

Haru blinks slowly at Rin, comprehension dawning on him probably too quickly and too eagerly, and then he turns back to look down at the sink. He finds it hard to resist when Rin’s hand suddenly lands on his shoulder, spins him around, and holds him to the edge of the counter. The reverent smile on Rin’s face contrasts his forceful actions, and a hand comes up to grip Haru’s chin.

If Haru thinks, _finally_ , as Rin guides him into a kiss, then it’s probably a product of exhaustion from all the birthday activities.

He lets himself get dragged into it, Rin’s lips warm and plush and insistent against his own, sighing into it to make it all the sweeter. When he breaks the kiss, he stays close; the smacking noise of their lips parting makes Haru want to sink into the ground like it’s water. He holds tight to Rin’s elbows to stay afloat.

“Why,” Haru gasps, and he means to continue but the way Rin laughs, briefly ducking his head down to rest it on Haru’s shoulder, suggests he doesn’t even need to elaborate.

“It was Nagisa’s plan, originally, as you might have guessed.”

“You all went through with it,” Haru points out, unimpressed, face burning at the thought of all the kisses he had to endure, and then _this_ one just now—Rin snorts.

“I guess they just really love you,” Rin says, shrugging with faux nonchalance, “or something.”

“And you?” Haru follows up thoughtlessly. Rin blinks, swallows visibly.

“You’re alright,” he says, and Haru’s figures he had intended to sound smug but it instead comes out like an exhale against Haru’s lips, his red eyes wide before he once again closes the gap between them.

“Happy birthday,” Rin breathes as he retracts, again, before kissing Haru’s cheek and then his jaw when Haru turns his head.

“You’ve said that four times today,” Haru grumbles, stomach dropping when Rin kisses by his ear. He pulls back a hair, tip of his nose nudging Haru’s, eyes nearly crossing as he looks at Haru.

“I’ve got a few birthdays to make up for, don’t I?” he says, tone jovial but something in the way he smiles contrite. Haru’s fingers grasp the hair at the nape of Rin’s neck.

“All eighteen of them,” Haru replies, and Rin smiles against Haru’s skin, mouth by his ear.

“You want eighteen ‘happy birthday’s? You hate that,” he laughs, and Haru shakes his head against him until Rin looks at him, and he purposefully juts his chin out; a silent request.

“Oh,” Rin sighs, and when they kiss again, Haru thinks that eighteen could be extraordinary.


End file.
